Bill Mazeroski, the Pirates' hero of the 1960 World Series, grew visibly emotional this afternoon at the unveiling of the model of the statue the team soon will erect in his honor.

"I hit one home run," he said at the team's annual media luncheon at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Downtown. "I get all the credit and don't deserve it. You get in the Hall of Fame. You get a street named after you. Holy hell, how can you get a better life than that? Now, I get a statue. I don't know what to say after that. Just, thanks."

Mazeroski had to pause -- and apologize -- three times during a three-minute speech for showing his emotions through a trembling voice.

The statue will be created by sculptor Susan Wagner, who previously did the Roberto Clemente and Willie Stargell statues, and it will be unveiled Sept. 5 before a game against the Washington Nationals.

As reported earlier in the week, the pose for the statue will be of Mazeroski rounding second bases after the home run, culled from a photograph by the Post-Gazette's James G. Klingensmith. And it will be located at the riverfront edge of Mazeroski Way, the short street on the side of PNC Park facing Heinz Field.